That instant at splashdown when we knew we did it. SpaceX launched and recovered an unpiloted Crew Dragon capsule last year and carried out a dramatic in-flight abort, again unpiloted, earlier this year. / CBS News. The GO Navigator rescue ship will move in to haul the Crew Dragon spacecraft out of the water and allow Behnken and Hurley to disembark. Including six excursions during two previous shuttle missions, Behnken now ranks fourth on the list of most experienced spacewalkers, with 61 hours and 10 minutes spent outside the station. "What a ride!" But NASA set a date for the return on Friday: Administrator Jim Bridenstine tweeted that the mission is targeting August 1 to undock Crew Dragon from the space station, and August 2 … "They will do a very thorough review, both on the SpaceX side and the NASA side, to make sure that they're comfortable. Crew Dragon Endeavour (Dragon C206) is a Crew Dragon spacecraft manufactured and operated by SpaceX and used by NASA's Commercial Crew Program. August 5, 2020 / 7:35 AM With this test flight, NASA and the U.S. aerospace industry are marking the first successful launch of a crew to the space station on a commercially built and operated American rocket and spacecraft, and a safe return to Earth for that … "When the time came to splash down ... we felt the splash and we saw it splash up over the windows. But it doesn't sound like a machine," Behnken explained. SpaceX Crew Dragon astronauts return to Earth SpaceX coverage has concluded. Robert Behnken, left, and spacecraft commander Douglas Hurley, greet recovery crews moments after the hatch of their Crew Dragon capsule was opened. That cleared the way for Hurley and Behnken to blast off on the program's first piloted mission, a test flight known as Demo 2. The fiery, flawlessly-controlled descent to splashdown went off without a hitch — a major step toward certifying the vehicle for operational flights. In about a minute, a second plume of four main parachutes — which are much larger — will fan out to continue slowing Hurley and Behnken's descent. Behnken waved to the cameras before heading to his medical check up. The two Crew Dragon astronauts currently aboard the International Space Station answered some questions about next month’s return trip in … New York (CNN Business) SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft — carrying NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley — splashed down into the Gulf of Mexico on Sunday, marking a … For the past nine years, NASA has relied on Russia's Soyuz spacecraft to ferry U.S. and partner agency astronauts to and from the station, paying more than $80 million per seat under recent contracts. Tracking footage of Crew Dragon’s descent, parachute deployments and splashdown pic.twitter.com/pzbm1iXCC6. NASA, SpaceX 'Crew Dragon' to return to Earth this weekend if weather permits 4 months 1 week 5 days ago Friday, July 31 2020 Jul 31, 2020 July 31, 2020 4:14 PM July 31, 2020 in News. Crew Dragon safely returns astronauts to Earth, despite minor hiccup The astronauts' exit from the capsule was slightly delayed by noxious gas, but they ultimately made it back to Earth unscathed. NASA SpaceX Dragon Crew Return to Earth & Splashdown - LIVE coverage begins at 10am ET on C-SPAN https://cs.pn/2BMLMj3] Behnken and Hurley, veterans of two space shuttle flights each, said the ride down was possibly more exciting than either expected. As expected, mission control has lost communications contact with the Crew Dragon capsule. The Crew Dragon recovery team has detected small amounts of NTO, or nitrogen tetroxide, a potentially toxic propellant used in the capsule's onboard rocket engines. But from a crew perspective, I think that it's definitely ready to go.". Scorch marks on the capsule were a testament to the rigors of its return journey. Demo-2 was also the first tw It started to fire thrusters and keep us pointed in the appropriate direction. It was launched into orbit on top of a Falcon 9 rocket on 30 May 2020 and successfully docked to the International Space Station (ISS) on 31 May 2020 as part of the Crew Dragon Demo-2 mission. "When it performed as expected, and we could check off those events, we were really, really comfortable coming through the atmosphere, even though, you know, it felt like we were inside of an animal," Behnken said. The spacecraft, with Hurley and Behnken still strapped in their seats, was hauled aboard a SpaceX recovery ship without incident. Unfortunately for SpaceX, NASA hasn’t decided when that return trip will actually happen. News SpaceX Crew Dragon spaceship to bring NASA astronauts home this summer Captured by Russian cosmonaut Ivan Vagner, Crew Dragon is set to return two NASA astronauts to Earth later this summer. NASA and SpaceX are planning to return Crew Dragon to Earth on Sunday after a departure from the ISS on Saturday. They were followed quickly by the Crew Dragon's four main parachutes. SpaceX’s Crew Dragon is the first of two private spacecraft funded by NASA to transport astronauts to the ISS. ET, kicking off the first major stage of their return voyage. It is the spacecraft used in the first crewed orbital spaceflight from the U… The spacecraft, named Endeavour, launched on 30 May 2020 at 19:22:45 UTC on top of Falcon 9 Booster B1058.1, and carried NASA astronauts Douglas Hurley and Robert Behnken to the International Space Station in the first crewed orbital spaceflight launched from the United States since the final Space Shuttle mission, STS-135, in 2011, and the first ever operated by a commercial provider. "Once we descended a little bit into the atmosphere, Dragon really came alive. 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SpaceX won approval from NASA in May to start reusing both the Crew Dragon … Behnken and Hurley are rapidly approaching their splashdown site. Two small boats swooped in immediately after splashdown. The SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, named Endeavour, lifted off May 30 on the company’s Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. After a brief hangup caused by wayward fumes given off by propellant, the Crew Dragon … Hurley, who piloted two shuttle missions, including the winged orbiter's final flight to the space station in 2011, said he expected some surprises during the Crew Dragon's reentry. ", When the capsule's stabilizing drogue parachutes deployed, followed by four large main chutes inflating, it felt "very much like getting hit in the back of the chair with a baseball bat," Behnken said. … Based at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Harwood is a devoted amateur astronomer and co-author of "Comm Check: The Final Flight of Shuttle Columbia.". Waiting in the wings is GO Navigator, a much larger vessel with a rig that can haul the Crew Dragon spacecraft itself out of the ocean. NASA and SpaceX are hoping for an uneventful return so Crew Dragon can go into regular service as an astronaut ferry from Earth to the station. At the ship's rear is a large rig that has plucked the spacecraft out of the ocean and nestled it in an onboard dock, nicknamed the Dragon's nest. This is common for spacecraft going through the extreme conditions of reentry, when the dramatic heat and buildup of plasma briefly interfere with radio waves used for communication. The pair began their descent inside the Crew Dragon Endeavour space capsule on Saturday evening, when the craft detached from the station and … The levels aren't high enough to be dangerous to humans, according to SpaceX and NASA officials. "It sounds like an animal coming through the atmosphere with all the puffs that are happening from the thrusters and the atmospheric noise. Why it's important: This was the final stretch of a historic mission — and in some respects it was the most dangerous leg of the journey. The astronauts flying today are Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley. Our coverage of the SpaceX Crew Dragon landing has ended. Over the next two months, Hurley and Behnken assisted Cassidy with a full slate of U.S. and partner agency research, logging 114 hours carrying out experiments that would not otherwise have gotten done with a single U.S. astronaut aboard. Hurley and Behnken were launched atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on May 30. The Crew Dragon and, eventually, Boeing's Starliner CST-100 capsules are intended to end that sole reliance on Russia while opening up low-Earth orbit to private-sector development. The atmosphere starts to make noise. It was just a great relief.". It was the first water landing for astronauts or cosmonauts returning from orbit since the final Apollo capsule closed out a joint flight with a Russian Soyuz spacecraft 45 years ago. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/spacex-crew-dragon-astronauts-return-to-earth The final hurdle for SpaceX and Crew Dragon is a safe return to Earth with astronauts on board. "I expected there to be some divergence and attitude control, because it's a real tough problem for the ship as it gets into the thicker air to maintain perfect attitude and control," he said. The astronauts are now on board SpaceX's GO Navigator recovery vessel and will soon take a helicopter flight back to terra firma. One is checking to make sure there are no toxic fumes around the Crew Dragon capsule. The Crew Dragon descending under parachutes Sunday, moments before splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico south of Pensacola, Florida. The blackout is expected to last six minutes. The Crew Dragon made a splashdown landing in the Gulf of Mexico just after 2:45 pm ET. Each Crew Dragon spacecraft is designed for at least five flights. Demo-2 is the first crewed flight of the Dragon and there is one more major test to be performed - safe return to Earth. In addition to carrying astronauts to space for NASA, SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft can also … ", "If you've seen an old movie that happened to have some guys who'd been in a centrifuge, that's what we felt like," he said. The Crew Dragon is the first American spacecraft to launch astronauts into orbit from U.S. soil since the space shuttle's final flight in 2011. 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